Habits of minds and hearts in neoliberal academia: a qualitative inquiry into English language teacher educators' professional and political roles and professional identity

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2023-2

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Aysan Şahintaş, Zeynep

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This qualitative case study analyzes how English language teacher educators construct their professional identities in a particular research-oriented university in Turkey. In addition, how their professional roles are projected in official policy documents produced in national and institutional higher education contexts, and how they fulfill their political roles in relation to their professional roles are other points of focus in this study. To answer related research questions, document analysis, in-depth semi-structured interviews and course observations were carried out. The analysis of the data revealed that researcher role is prioritized over others by official policy documents. Also, point systems and incentives have established an external control that both regulates and standardizes type, content and number of academic works expected from English language teacher educators. Moreover, the findings revealed that their professional and educational biographies; professional roles and work; and instiutitonal and national higher education contexts influence their professional identity formation. In addition, external, stringent and competing demands of their professional roles as well as promotion criteria are an impediment to constructing a robust professional identity. Lastly, it was found that the participants’ contribution to pre-service teachers’ critical political socialization to their future profession is limited and on an ad hoc basis. The overall findings allow the conclusion that their professional identities are vulnerable to policies and external requirements driven mainly by neoliberal managerialism. Given all, their professional identities can be conceptualized as a fragmented, individualized, responsibilized, multiple, contextual and complex structure; a constant struggle; an emotional ambivalence; and an agentic power.

Subject Keywords

Teacher educators, Professional identity, Professional roles, Political roles, Neoliberal universities

URI

https://hdl.handle.net/11511/101976

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Graduate School of Social Sciences, Thesis

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Citation Formats

Z. Aysan Şahintaş, “Habits of minds and hearts in neoliberal academia: a qualitative inquiry into English language teacher educators’ professional and political roles and professional identity,” Ph.D. - Doctoral Program, Middle East Technical University, 2023.